Tax 20.03Tax 20.03Distribution of credit. A payment to a municipality under s. 79.10 (4), Stats., made from the appropriation under s. 20.835 (3) (qb), Stats., may not, as determined by the department, exceed the amount of the school levy credit paid to resident individuals in that municipality.

Tax 20.04Tax 20.04Purpose. The purpose of this subchapter is to provide definitions related to the lottery and gaming credit and establish procedures to assist in the management of the lottery and gaming credit program at the state, county, town, village, and city level.

Tax 20.04 NoteNote: Department of Revenue forms mentioned throughout this subchapter are located on the department's web site at www.revenue.wi.gov.

Tax 20.05(1)(1) “Application" means the form used to claim the lottery and gaming credit.

Tax 20.05(2)(2) “Approved property" means taxable real estate or an item of personal property that contains the primary residence of an owner whose application for a lottery and gaming credit has been timely filed under s. Tax 20.07 or 20.11, and has not been disqualified by the department.

Tax 20.05(3)(3) “Certification date" means January 1 of the year the tax is levied. For manufactured and mobile homes placed in a manufactured or mobile home community after January 1, the certification date is determined under s. 66.0435 (3) (c) 2., Stats.

Tax 20.05(6)(6) “Dwelling" means a structure or that part of a multidwelling or multipurpose structure occupied as separate living quarters. Separate living quarters are those in which the occupants live and eat separately from any other persons in the building and which have direct access from outside the building or through a common hall. “Dwelling" does not include a structure which is exempt from property taxes under s. 70.111 (19) or 70.112 (5), Stats., in the year of the credit.

Tax 20.05(8)(8) “Maximum credit value" or “MCV" means the value of property calculated by the department as provided in s. 79.10 (11) (c), Stats., for purposes of computing the lottery and gaming credit.

Tax 20.05(10)(10) “Monthly municipal permit fee" means the fee calculated under s. 66.0435 (3) (c), Stats., collected by the local taxing authority or community operator, as defined in s. 66.0435 (1) (c), Stats., from each occupied space or lot in a manufactured or mobile home community located in the licensing authority's boundaries.

Tax 20.05(12)(a)(a) A person named as an owner on the title instrument for that person's primary residence which is recorded in the records of the register of deeds for the county in which that person's primary residence is located.

Tax 20.05(12)(c)(c) A partner of a partnership under s. 178.0102 (11), Stats., or shareholder of a tax-option corporation as defined in s. 71.34 (2), Stats., or a shareholder of a small business corporation as defined in s. 1361 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code, if that partnership or corporation owns property that is the primary residence of the partner or shareholder.

Tax 20.05(12)(d)(d) A buyer in possession under a land contract of property which is the primary residence of the buyer, provided that the land contract or the instrument evidencing the existence of a land contract is notarized no later than 6 months after the certification date.

Tax 20.05(12)(f)(f) A member, as defined in s. 185.01 (5), Stats., of a cooperation as defined in s. 185.01 (2), Stats., that owns property that is the primary residence of the member.

Tax 20.05(12)(g)(g) A person holding a property interest for life under s. 700.02 (3), Stats., in property on which that person's primary residence is located, provided that the life interest is notarized no later than 6 months after the certification date.

Tax 20.05(12)(i)(i) A lawfully authorized agent of an owner described under pars. (a) to (h) acting on behalf of that owner.

Tax 20.05(13)(13) “Primary residence" means the dwelling where an individual lives most of the time and to which, when temporarily away, the individual returns, except that no individual may have more than one primary residence at any time. “Primary residence" includes a dwelling located in this state lived in by an individual for more than 6 months during a year in which the individual lived only part of the year in this state.

Tax 20.05 NoteNote: Eligibility for the lottery credit will not be denied to an owner who is a temporary resident of a facility such as a health care facility if it is the intent of the owner to return to his or her primary residence.

Tax 20.05(14)(14) “School tax rate" means the rate computed by the department as the total amount levied by the school district in which the property is located divided by the full value of the school district excluding tax incremental district value increments.

Tax 20.06(1)(1) For owners of taxable property, the credit is computed as the estimated fair market value, not to exceed the maximum credit value, of the approved property multiplied by the school tax rate for the school district in which the approved property is located.

Tax 20.06(2)(2) For owners of manufactured and mobile homes subject to a monthly municipal permit fee, the credit is computed as the fair market value minus the tax exempt household furnishings of the manufactured or mobile home, as established by the assessor under s. 66.0435 (3) (c), Stats., for January 1, not to exceed the maximum credit value, multiplied by the school tax rate for the school district in which the manufactured or mobile home is located.

Tax 20.06(3)(3) The amount of property tax or monthly municipal permit fee due after subtracting the lottery and gaming credit may not be less than zero.

Tax 20.07(1)(a)(a) An owner of taxable property who qualifies for the lottery and gaming credit may claim the credit on an application form prescribed by the department. The application form shall require the claimant to attest to, as of the certification date, owning the property described on the application form and using it as a primary residence. The completed application form shall be filed with the county treasurer except that in a city that collects taxes under s. 74.87, Stats., the application form shall be filed with the city treasurer. A claim made under this paragraph is valid until no longer eligible, at which time the claim shall be withdrawn by the claimant as required under sub. (3), except as provided under s. Tax 20.12 (2).

Tax 20.07 NoteNote: The various application forms used to claim the lottery and gaming credit are available on the department's web site at www.revenue.wi.gov.

Tax 20.07(1)(b)(b) If more than one owner qualifies for and claims a credit on taxable property, each owner shall claim the credit under par. (a) on a separate application form. The number of credits claimed on a property may not exceed the number of dwellings on the property. Total credits for each dwelling are limited by s. Tax 20.06 (3).

Tax 20.07 NoteNote: Examples of owners whose primary residence is on the same property as another owner include co-owners of agricultural land on which each owner has a primary residence or co-owners of a duplex in which each dwelling is occupied by one of the owners.

Tax 20.07(1)(c)(c) An owner who qualifies for the credit against taxes but whose tax bill does not reflect the credit may claim the credit until January 31 following the issuance of the tax bill by filing the application form under par. (a) with the treasurer collecting the taxes. If the application form is approved, the treasurer shall proceed under s. Tax 20.08 (1) (e). Requests made after January 31 shall be filed with the department no later than October 1 following the issuance of the person's property tax bill, on the appropriate late claim application form, for processing under s. Tax 20.11 (2). The department will notify the applicable treasurer of those late claims approved by the department. The treasurer shall then enter the property on the next tax role as property that qualifies for a lottery and gaming credit. The owner should also file an application under par. (a), with the applicable treasurer, to apply for the credit for subsequent years. A claim made under this paragraph is valid until no longer eligible, at which time the claim shall be withdrawn by the claimant as required under sub. (3), except as provided under s. Tax 20.12 (2).

Tax 20.07(1)(d)1.1. If a property transferred qualifies for the credit because a previous owner used the property as his or her primary residence on the certification date, the new owner of the property may apply for the credit on a form prescribed by the department, or by indicating on the real estate transfer return that the property will be used by the owner as their primary residence. Requests made under this paragraph shall be filed with the treasurer of the county in which the property is located or, if the property is located in a city that collects taxes under s. 74.87, Stats., with the treasurer of that city.

Tax 20.07(1)(d)2.2. A claim made under par. (a) is valid until no longer eligible, at which time the claim shall be withdrawn by the claimant, except as provided under s. Tax 20.12 (2). If the claimant under this paragraph does not own or use the property as his or her primary residence on the certification date of any year subsequent to the year of the claim, the claimant shall withdraw the claim as required under sub. (3).

Tax 20.07(1)(e)(e) Requests made after January 31 of the year following the year of the credit shall be filed with the department no later than October 1 following the issuance of the person's property tax bill for processing under s. Tax 20.11 (2) on the appropriate late claim application form. The submission of a late claim application form with the department does not certify the owner for future credits. The department will notify the applicable treasurer of those late claims approved by the department. The treasurer shall then enter the property on the next tax role as property that qualifies for a lottery and gaming credit. The owner shall also file an application under par. (a) with the applicable treasurer to apply for the credit for subsequent years. A claim made under this paragraph is valid until no longer eligible, at which time the claim shall be withdrawn by the claimant as required under sub. (3), except as provided under s. Tax 20.12 (2).

Tax 20.07(2)(a)(a) The owner of a manufactured or mobile home, subject to a monthly municipal permit fee, who qualifies for the credit as of January 1, may claim the credit on an application form prescribed by the department. The application form shall require the claimant to attest to, as of the certification date, owning the manufactured or mobile home described on the application and using it as a primary residence. The completed application form must be filed with the taxation district treasurer no later than February 10 of the year the owner is eligible for the credit. A claim made under this paragraph is valid until no longer eligible, at which time the claim shall be withdrawn by the claimant as required under sub. (3), except as provided under s. Tax 20.12 (2).

Tax 20.07(2)(b)(b) The taxation district treasurer shall compute the amount of the lottery and gaming credit under s. Tax 20.06 (2). One-twelfth of the credit computed under this paragraph shall be subtracted from each monthly municipal permit fee otherwise due for the parking site occupied by the owner under par. (a) on January 1.

Tax 20.07(2)(c)(c) The amount of the lottery and gaming credit received for months in which a fee is not due for the parking site of an owner under par. (a) shall be recorded by the taxation district treasurer and returned to the department by January 20 of the following year. The taxation district treasurer may charge back to the school district the corresponding credits previously settled for under s. Tax 20.10.

Tax 20.07(3)(3)Withdrawing a claim. Within 30 days of the date on which the claimant no longer owns the taxable real or personal property or the manufactured or mobile home subject to a monthly municipal permit fee on which a claim was based, or no longer uses the property as a primary residence, the claimant shall inform the treasurer administering the credit under this section that the claimant is no longer eligible to claim a credit for the property. Failure to do so may subject the owner to penalties under s. Tax 20.12 (2).

Tax 20.08(1)(a)(a) The treasurer administering the credit under s. Tax 20.07 (1) (a) shall prepare application forms for properties likely to qualify for the lottery and gaming credit or upon request. Prepared application forms shall include the property identification number and the physical address of the property address or other description of the property. The prepared application for the lottery and gaming credit shall be distributed to the owner of the property for their certification as to whether the property qualifies for the credit.

Tax 20.08(1)(b)(b) The treasurer administering the credit under s. Tax 20.07 (1) (a) shall accept application forms for the lottery and gaming credit for taxable property through the October 31 prior to issuance of the tax bill. The treasurer shall accept facsimiles of application forms or other documents evidencing a claim that include all the information contained in the application form prescribed by the department if such facsimiles or other documents are received by the treasurer by October 31. The treasurer may not accept application forms postmarked earlier than the certification date.

Tax 20.08(1)(c)(c) If a treasurer receives an application without an owner's signature, the claim for the credit may not be granted. The treasurer shall attempt to contact the owner and advise of the need to sign the application.

Tax 20.08(1)(d)(d) If a treasurer has reason to question a signed application form, the treasurer shall approve the claim but shall mark the property for audit by the department. The treasurer shall advise the department of all properties marked for audit on the March 1 report under sub. (4) (c).

Tax 20.08(1)(e)(e) The treasurer administering the credit under s. Tax 20.07 (1) (a) shall remove the credit from a property as of the next January 1 after the filing of a real estate transfer return, unless one of the following applies:

Tax 20.08(1)(e)1.1. The real estate transfer return indicates that the property will be used as the primary residence of the new owner.

Tax 20.08(1)(f)(f) An owner who qualifies for the lottery and gaming credit but whose tax bill does not reflect the credit, may claim the credit until January 31 following the issuance of the tax bill by filing the application form under s. Tax 20.07 (1) (a) with the treasurer responsible for collecting the January payment of the owner's property taxes. The treasurer shall compute the credit, subtract the calculated credit from the amount of taxes due to the extent allowed under s. Tax 20.06 (3), for the approved property of the owner, and make an appropriate entry in the tax roll. If the tax has been paid in full, the treasurer shall provide a refund for the amount of the credit, not to exceed the amount of tax paid. The treasurer shall, on or before settlement under s. 74.25 or 74.30, Stats., convey to the county treasurer the property identification number, property address or other description of the property, credit amount, and the name and mailing address for each claim accepted under this paragraph.

Tax 20.08(1)(g)(g) The treasurer administering the credit under s. Tax 20.07 (1) (a) shall, by July 1 in each year ending in a four or nine, submit to the department a copy of the procedures used to conduct their verification of the eligibility of credits claimed within their territory under the requirements of s. 79.10 (10) (f), Stats. The procedures shall include methods used by the treasurer to identify properties receiving the credit based on a certification received by a previous owner and notification of property owners that potentially qualify for the credit that are not currently receiving the credit. A summary of the results from the latest verification of eligibility conducted by the treasurer shall be submitted with the procedures.

Tax 20.08 NoteExample: A treasurer is required to submit the information specified in par. (g) by July 1 of 2014 and July 1 of 2019.

Tax 20.08(3)(a)(a) The treasurer under s. Tax 20.07 (1) (a) shall cause the lottery and gaming credit to appear on tax bills for approved properties for which an application has been received under sub. (1) (b). Except as provided in par. (b), the total amount of the lottery and gaming credit shall be deducted from the net property tax included in the first installment. If the lottery and gaming credit exceeds the amount of net property taxes included in the first installment, the excess shall be deducted from subsequent installments, but no installment may be reduced below zero.